Selene Thandof: Cadence
by Jaxrond
Summary: Once an Exorcist, always an Exorcist. Not even death could save her from that fate, not when she was revived to fight again. A tool of war. A weapon. God's disciple. The Black Order thought it owned her. But, if she is God's disciple, then she will belong to no one but God. Until she chooses of her own free will what mortal might lay claim to her. (Selene Thandof: Rewritten)


The moon was full as it shown down from the dark sky. Wisps of cloud floated across the blackness, occasionally passing over the light and casting it in shadow, but never blocking it completely. The moon was alone in the sky, as, for whatever reason, nature had dictated that the stars not be present. It was by the light of this singular presence that a carriage sped over the land. The carriage rolled down the dirt road of the English countryside, jostling with each bump and divot it met. However, even as it jounced, its pace did not slow. The horses at the front were driven to an almost frenzied rate, racing along.

Within the carriage, a small girl sat across from a man. She was bundled in a coat and scarf, her eyes, a light hazel, peeking over the black fabric. Long coppery hair stood out starkly against her clothes, shimmering in the moonlight that shone through the carriage window. She frowned slightly with each jostling, disliking the way she had to clench her muscles to keep from being tossed about. She tugged at the gloves on her hands in a fidgety manner, frowning more deeply. She had never worn anything like them before, and they itched.

"You'll pick holes in them if you keep doing that."

The girl looked up at the man, who was smiling a warm smile that did not dissipate the worry in his eyes. She gave a small nod and let her hands fall into her lap, gaze dropping to her hands, which still itched. After a moment, her light eyes darted back up to her companion. He was fairly young, only in his mid-thirties, but, already, his face was weary, as though he carried the weight of the world. His blonde hair had been dyed brown, though why, the girl was not sure. She disliked the unfamiliarity of the new color. He had cut it too. Rather than hanging in an elegant tail like it used to, his hair now was cropped so that it could simply be slicked back. She frowned again, a wrinkle appearing between her eyes. It didn't look right.

The man caught her frown and raised his brows in question. They were brown too, so that his new hair color looked more natural. How he had managed to change his eye color, she did not know, but, she did not like it.

"What is it, Selene?"

"You don't look right, Charles," she said bluntly, in a tone that, while soft, was much too mature for her age.

Charles's eyes did crinkle this time as he smiled. He chuckled lightly.

"I know. Is that why you've been frowning at me?"

Selene nodded, still frowning. Charles sighed, leaning his elbows on his knees, his nearness to her becoming familiar and easy. His hands hung limply at his wrists, his slumped posture speaking volumes of his exhaustion.

"I'm sorry. It was the best way to escape."

The girl cocked her head. She was not sure why they were running, or really, who they were fleeing from. However, she trusted Charles. His had been the first face she saw upon waking up, a familiar face, though she was not sure why it was familiar. She had what could only be memories of him. Though, these memories were confusing at the very least, striking without warning and sending her into a dizzying spiral that usually ended in a headache. The most confusing aspect was attempting to reconcile the images of Charles from the memories to what she saw. In the few memories she had, she was almost on the same level as he was, not needing to look up nearly as much. She had the impression that she had been taller then, though, how that was possible, she did not know. Despite the oddness in her memories, though, and only having a few, Selene knew that Charles was her friend, that she could trust Charles to protect her and keep her safe.

"I know, it's confusing," the now brown-haired man continued, seeing her expression, "But it was the only way to keep you safe," he looked pained, "I saw what they did to the ones whose memories started returning in force…they euthanized them. I couldn't let them do that to you, Selene. When you recognized me, it was apparent that yours would return quickly too."

Selene's brows drew together further, the line on her forehead deepening. She knew that she should understand this, but, she felt as though something were blocking her full comprehension, just like something was keeping her from full recollection of her memories. She gave a small, frustrated sigh.

"Where are we going?" she asked, giving up on recollection and comprehension.

Charles looked out the window, still leaning on his knees.

"I know someone, an old friend, who can take care of you."

A sudden bout of panic caused Selene to scoot to the edge of her seat, closer to him. She did not want to leave his side. She was not sure why she felt so strongly, but something within her screamed a resounding 'no' at the thought of being separated from him.

"No! I want to stay with you!" she sounded much more like a child than she had previously, "Charles, please!"

Charles winced at the pleading tone in her voice. He looked back at her, gently taking her hands in his.

"I'm sorry, Selene, but I can't stay with you. They'll be looking for me. But you, you're an unknown. I woke you up before they could. They know nothing about you yet. I have to keep running. But you can hide…settle down. Be free."

He smiled, squeezing her hands. Selene looked into his eyes and saw the bittersweet emotions there. She looked down at their joined hands.

"But I want to stay with you…"

There was a pause. Then, Charles leaned his head down so that his forehead met hers. She looked back up at him to find that his eyes were squeezed shut. There was a long moment of silence in which they sat together, unconcerned by the jostling of the carriage. Selene closed her eyes as well, letting herself relax in his strange familiarity and nearness.

"You'll be alright," Charles finally said, "You'll be safe, away from them. It's what he would have wanted."

Selene found herself agreeing, though, she was not entirely sure who it was Charles was speaking of.


End file.
